What's going on in your garden (2024)?

[karadekoolaid]

Right. My mission this month, if I choose to accept it, is to eliminate moles from the garden.
This message will auto destruct (as will the moles, I hope) in about 3 weeks...

My name is Donald Joseph Mole
I feel I'm a success,
I will not eat your plants up
But I'll make your lawn a mess

I burrow here, I burrow there,
I ruin all your grass,
But Mr Karadekoolaid
Is going to get my a***

 

[TastyReuben]

Right. My mission this month, if I choose to accept it, is to eliminate moles from the garden.
This message will auto destruct (as will the moles, I hope) in about 3 weeks...
View attachment 114960

Moles had subsided to nearly nothing the last several years, but this year, they’re back with a vengeance. I’ve got mounds all over the property.

 

[Morning Glory]

I have no advice for the groundhogs, but I have found both coffee grounds and crushed-up eggshells spread around the base of plants to be pretty effective at repelling slugs and snails in the past.

I was about to offer the same advice. There are also certain plants they hate such as perfumed herbs such as thyme, rosemary etc.

 

[Timenspace]

perfumed herbs such as thyme, rosemary etc.

Oh thanks! Will pass the info to him...

 

[Herbaceous]

Got a pleasant surprise in my hanging basket - I thought the flowers I bought and planted in here were all pink, but it turns out some of them are purple! (On the left side of the basket)

 

[karadekoolaid]

Very beautiful. Fuschias, right?

 

[Herbaceous]

Very beautiful. Fuschias, right?

Yep!

They had hanging baskets of them at the garden centre, but I decided to save some money by just buying a few plants instead. We have plenty of empty hanging baskets from previous years so I just filled one with soil and put the plants in there. It’s starting to fill out nicely!

 

[Herbaceous]

Common milkweed and English lavender in bloom today.

 

[TastyReuben]

This little critter was sitting just off the front porch, in the shrubs:

I scared it, but not much, as all it did was hop the downspout and give me a look.

Mentioned it to MrsT, and she said, “Yep, we know each other. That thing came right up to me the other day, when I was sitting on the porch, stopped right between my feet, and stared at me for a good 30 seconds before running off.”

Looks to be a baby - hope it’s not lost its mother.

 

[TastyReuben]

Look at this giant thing:

I’ve tried killing it more than once, it’s just too damn big, and it seems like it just makes it stronger!

 

[Morning Glory]

Look at this giant thing:

View attachment 115355

I’ve tried killing it more than once, it’s just too damn big, and it seems like it just makes it stronger!

Why are you trying to kill it? It looks like a hosta to me.

 

[TastyReuben]

Why are you trying to kill it? It looks like a hosta to me.

Yeah, it’s a hosta - it’s way too big and chokes anything else out around it, and it’s overpowering the whole space.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Yeah, it’s a hosta - it’s way too big and chokes anything else out around it, and it’s overpowering the whole space.

You'll need to dig it out.

 

[TastyReuben]

You'll need to dig it out.

I’ve tried that twice and I think I must have left like one molecule of hosta root behind, because that thing popped back up the following year, and boy was it angry!

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

I’ve tried that twice and I think I must have left like one molecule of hosta root behind, because that thing popped back up the following year, and boy was it angry!

You know in the UK, they fight to get hostas to grow!

It will have enjoyed the space and freedom and lack of competition for resources.